Reduced hepatic clearance of propranolol induced by chronic carbon tetrachloride treatment in rats

Effect of liver injury induced by chronic treatment with carbon tetrachloride for 1 to 4 months on hepatic clearance of propranolol was investigated in male Wistar rats. Plasma propranolol level after i.v. and p.o. dosing (1.0 mg/kg) was always higher in the rats which were treated for 2 and 4 months than in control (sham-injected) rats. The chronic treatment reduced hepatic clearance of propranolol significantly, yielding only approximately 30 to 50% of the control clearance value. Distribution volume of this drug was also significantly reduced by the chronic treatment but seemed to be less sensitive to the treatment than the hepatic clearance. Accordingly, the elimination rate constant was decreased slightly in the rats treated longer than 2 months. The chronic treatment for 2 and 4 months also reduced intrinsic hepatic clearance substantially. The hepatic clearance estimated for both these control and chronically treated rats was significantly dependent on the liver blood flow. Furthermore, propranolol was eliminated much more slowly in the injured liver of the rat which was treated for 2 or 4 months than in the control liver when perfused in in vitro technique. It is, therefore, suggested that the metabolic dysfunction induced by chronic treatment with carbon tetrachloride may be directly related to substantial changes in anatomical arrangement of the hepatic circulation (portasystemic shunting), which may be due to a fibrosis of the tissue.